USA > Pennsylvania > Jefferson County > Brookville > A pioneer history of Jefferson county, Pennsylvania and my first recollections of Brookville, Pennsylvania, 1840-1843, when my feet were bare and my cheeks were brown > Part 50
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PIONEER HISTORY OF JEFFERSON COUNTY, PENNA.
dwelling now stands. Besides these houses just built, a little log house stood down by the North Fork Creek. Such was Brookville in May, 1831, sixty-seven years ago. There was not a street opened, and the turnpike ran in a straight line from Allgeier's hotel to Dr. Hunt's resi- dence."
There is one person (John Butler) still living in Brookville who has seen a slave that was owned in Brookville whipped with a blacksnake whip on Pickering Street, between Joseph Darr's residence and where the Methodist Episcopal church now stands.
In 1835, Brookville contained about one hundred and thirty five people. The village had six merchants, -- viz., Evans & Clover, William Rodgers, James Corbett, Jared B. Evans, Jack & Wise, and Steadman & Watson. Each storekeeper had a large dry pine block, called "upping block," in front of his store room, to assist men and women to mount or alight from their horses. The stores were lighted with candles and warmed with wood-fires. Wood-fires in stoves and chimneys were very dangerous, on account of the accumulation of wood-soot in the chimney ; for when this soot gathered in quantity it always ignited, burned out, and endangered the shingle roof. Towns and cities then had men and boys called professional " chimney-sweeps." These "sweeps" entered the chimney from the fireplace, climbing up and out at the top by the aid of hooks, announcing their exit in a song and looking as black as an African negro. In 1835 some of the legal privileges of the town were : " That no citizen of the town shall be permitted to keep on Main Street, at one time, more than ten cords of wood, not more than enough brick to build a chimney, or before his door more lumber than will build a spring-house ; not more than two wagons and a half-sled ; a few barrels of salt, five thousand shingles, or twenty head of horned cattle." Of course, there was no legal restriction as to the number of " chickens in the garden" or geese and hogs on the street. On dark nights the people then carried lanterns made of tin, holes being punched in them, and the light produced by a candle. The lantern had a side door to open, to light, blow out, and replace the candle.
"MAIL ARRIVALS AND DEPARTURES.
" The Mail arrives from Philadelphia by way of Harrisburg, Lewis- town, and Bellefonte every Monday evening, Wednesday evening, and Friday evening in a four Horse Coach.
" From Erie, by way of Meadville, Franklin, &c., every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday evenings, and returns the same day, in a four Horse Stage.
" From Washington City, by way of Chambersburgh, Indiana, &c., every Friday and returns same day-carried on a Horse.
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PIONEER HISTORY OF JEFFERSON COUNTY, PENNA.
" From Pittsburg by way of Kittanning every Friday, and returns on Tuesday-carried on a Horse.
" Arrive at this place every Tuesday, from Smethport, Mckean county by way of Gillis Post-office, and returns on Friday-carried on a Horse."-Republican, Brookville, January, 1835.
4
Stage
Coach
EARLY SCHOOLS - PIONEER ACT AUTHORIZING BROOKVILLE TO ELECT SCHOOL DIRECTORS-PIONEER ELECTION OF DIRECTORS AND PIONEER MASTERS.
The act of the Legislature No. 109, approved April 4, 1837, author- ized the election of school directors. Section 7 and 8 read as follows :
" SECTION 7. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, in General Assembly met, and it is hereby enacted by authority of the same, That the citizens of the bor- ough of Brookville, in the county of Jefferson, be and are hereby author- ized to meet at the usual place of holding borough elections, on the first Monday of January, in the year one thousand eight hundred and thirty- seven, and afterwards annually, at the time of holding their borough elec- tions, and elect six school directors, in the manner provided for the election of school directors by law.
"SECTION 8. And that all moneys now in the treasury of Rose town- ship school district, assessed on the citizens of the borough aforesaid, shall
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PIONEER HISTORY OF JEFFERSON COUNTY, PENNA.
be paid to the use and for the support of schools in said borough, that now are, or that may be hereafter, organized under the provisions of the act aforesaid.
" Approved-the fourth day of April, A.D. one thousand eight hun- dred and thirty seven."
The following notice of pioneer election for directors appeared in the Brookville Republican, Thursday, September 7, 1837 :
" Saturday next, at three o'clock in the afternoon, is the time agreed upon by the citizens of Brookville for holding an election to elect six school directors for this borough. It is important that every friend of education, and we hope we have no citizen who would oppose it, should be in attendance and give his vote for delegates, in order to give weight to the proceedings. We repeat that we hope there will be a unanimous attendance of the citizens at said election."
On September 9, 1837, the people elected the following school direc- tors : Levi G. Clover, Samuel Craig, David Henry, C. A. Alexander, William A. Sloan, James Corbett.
The pioneer school-house in the town was built in 1832. It was a small one-storied brick building, Major William Rodgers says, about twenty feet square. It stood near the northwest corner of the present location of the county jail. The building was erected under the pro- visions of the law of 1809, and was paid for by voluntary subscriptions. Alexander McKnight taught the pioneer term of school in it in 1832-33. Anticipating the want of a stove for the contemplated building, Major William Rodgers, then one of the business men of the new town, wrote the following " subscription-paper" and collected the money on it. The money was invested in what was then called a " ten-plate stove,", so called because it was formed of ten pieces or " plates of metal." The fuel used in it was wood.
"We, the undersigned subscribers, do severally promise to pay the sums set to our names, on demand, to the trustees of the Brookville school, to be applied to the purchase of a stove for the use of the school- house in Brookville. Witness our hands, the 18th day of February, 1832 :
" SUBSCRIBERS' NAMES.
William Clark
$0.50
Joseph Clements .50
Elijah Heath 1.00
Isaac Mills .50
Thomas Robinson . .50
Thomas Barr .
.25
Joseph Mccullough
.50
James Hall .
.25
505
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PIONEER HISTORY OF JEFFERSON COUNTY, PENNA.
James Corbett
.50
Aaron Fuller
.25
David Henry
.25
Thomas Hall .
.50
Joseph Sharp .
.25
Andrew Vastbinder
.25
Fr. Heterick
.50
Thomas Lucas
.50
Thomas Hastings .50
C. J. Dunham .50
William Kelso
.25
William Rodgers
.25
W. Mccullough
.25
Sloan .
.25
Total
$9.00"
As happens nowadays, a few of these subscriptions were not paid.
In the memories of some of our oldest citizens now cluster recollec- tions of this little old brick school house and the ten-plate stove thus purchased to warm it. About that little school-house were formed many ties which bound men and women together as friends in long succeeding years. Around that little temple of learning I have seen
" The hoop, the bow and arrow, The soaring of the kite and swing, The humming of the ' over-ball,' And the marbles in the ring ;
The sleds, the rope, and sliding-boards, The races down the yard, And the war of snow-ball armies, The victors and the scarred."
In this little brick house the Methodists for years held their weekly prayer-meetings. The principal members were Judge Heath, Arad Pear- sall, John Dixon, John Heath, David and Cyrus Butler, David Henry and wife, and Mary, Jane, and Sarah Gaston.
The pioneer Sunday-school teacher in Brookville was Cyrus Butler. Professor Blose and Miss Kate Scott both err in saying that Cyrus Butler taught the first or pioneer school in the old jail in Brookville in 1830. The old jail was not built until 1831, and Cyrus Butler never taught any school or class in this county but in the Sunday-school.
School-masters who taught in Brookville subscription schools under the law of 1809 :
1832-33 .- Alexander McKnight, pioneer. 1834 .- Miss Charlotte Clark, Charles E. Tucker. 1835 .- John Wilson.
1836 .- Hannibal Craighead.
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PIONEER HISTORY OF JEFFERSON COUNTY, PENNA.
Masters who taught under the common school law of 1834 :
1837 .- Cyrus Crouch, pioneer, had sixty scholars in a house where the United Presbyterian church now stands.
1838 .- Rev. Dexter Morris, a Baptist preacher. 1839 .- John Smith.
Pioneer academy.
1840 .- S. M. Bell, Mrs. M. T. H. Roundy.
1841 .- D. S. Deering.
All or nearly all of the above masters taught in the little brick school- house that was built on the back of the lot where the jail now stands.
1842 .- R. J. Nicholson, Miss Elizabeth Brady, first to teach in the academy building.
1843 .- R. J. Nicholson, Miss Nancy Lucas.
PIONEER SCHOOL DIRECTORS.
The following is a list of the pioneer and early school directors for the borough of Brookville, Pennsylvania, from 1834 to 1805 :
Rose Township.
1834 .- Colonel Alexander McKnight, James Green, Robert Andrews, Irwin Robinson, Darius Carrier.
1835 .- Darius Carrier, Colonel Alexander McKnight.
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PIONEER HISTORY OF JEFFERSON COUNTY, PENNA.
Brookville Borough.
1837 .- General L. S. Clover, C. A. Alexander, David Henry, Samuel Craig, William A. Sloan, James Corbett.
1839 .- Cyrus Butler, John Dougherty, Robert P. Barr.
1840 .- John M. McCoy, Robert P. Barr.
1841 .- John Smith, Esq., Samuel B. Bishop.
1842 .- D. B. Jenks, Esq., J. G. Clark, Esq., Hugh Brady, Esq.
1843 .- George Irwin, John Dougherty.
1844 .- Samuel B. Bishop, C. A. Alexander, Thomas Wilkins, L. B. Dunham.
1845 .- Dr. James Dowling, David S. Deering, Thomas M. Barr, Hon. J. B. Evans.
Fifty years ago spelling contests in schools were common, regularly every Saturday afternoon, and sometimes a neighborhood had rival school contests at night. It was one of the backwoods amusements, and a useful one, too. It was conducted in this wise : Two of the best spell- ers were chosen captains, these would alternately select other spellers, and form their followers on opposite sides, sitting or standing. The school- master would give out the words from a book agreed upon, or sometimes at his option. When a scholar missed a word he vacated his place ; this plan was pursued until but one scholar remained of either side. Then his side was declared victorious and the best speller was a hero. A spelling craze passed over the United States in 1875, and Brookville caught the fever and had a contest,-viz. :
" SPELLING-BEE'' IN BROOKVILLE.
The following account of a spelling bee in Brookville is taken from an issue of the Jeffersonian published in the fall of 1875. Its perusal will doubtless call up in the minds of many the incidents of the evening. It will be remembered how "Schuylkill" seated E. Heath Clark, and " inter-nos" settled Dr. Sweeney :
" The first spelling-match in Brookville came off on Thursday even- ing last. The original intention was to hold it in the room of the musi- cal society, but it was found there would not be room there for the crowd, when the court-room was secured. The attendance was large, and the in- terest taken in it by both contestants and spectators was marked. The cap- tains were William Dickey and David Eason, Esqs. Each side numbered twenty, and among the spellers were found lawyers, doctors, school- teachers, etc. The difficult task of pronouncing was assigned to Hon. George A. Jenks, who probably discharged his duty as satisfactorily to all parties as any one could have done. After the arrangements neces- sary had been made, the spelling commenced, and was continued for one hour, when it was found that Captain Eason's side had missed thirty-one
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PIONEER HISTORY OF JEFFERSON COUNTY, PENNA.
words, while Captain Dickey's side had missed thirty-two words. On Eason's side there were seven who had not missed a word, and on Dickey's side four. Between these eleven commenced the contest for the prize,-Macaulay's ' History of England,' in five volumes. In a short time but one speller was up on Eason's side, and he our old friend, Dr. McKnight, while Rev. A. B. Fields and Mrs. T. L. Templeton on Dickey's side were arrayed against him. The word 'soirée,' however, was too much for the doctor, and he retired as gracefully as a French dancing-master. The contest now was between Mrs. Templeton and Mr. Fields, both of Dickey's side ; but 'apropos' soon left Rev. Fields master of the field and the possessor of the prize. We were surprised to hear so few words missed, and, taken altogether, the spelling was much above the average."
NOTE .- I should have been declared the victor in this match. After it became a personal contest, Mr. Fields went down on the word " guar- anty," and after we had spelled several rounds he was permitted to take his place again. Great sympathy existed in this community for Rev. Fields on account of his domestic troubles. The management of the class acted outrageously in their determination to favor the reverend. I spelled the word "soirée" in this way: "s-o-i-r-e," and before pro- nouncing the word corrected the spelling in the last syllable by saying " double-ee," but still I was ruled out, because they wished the reverend to have the prize. I made no objection.
MINUTES OF THE PIONEER SESSION OF BROOKVILLE TOWN COUNCIL.
" On the 19th day of July, 1834, the following officers having been duly elected, chosen, and sworn to serve the borough of Brookville, in Jefferson County, for the current year,-viz : Thomas Lucas, Esq., Burgess ; William Jack, James Corbett, John Eason, Robert Larrimer, Thomas Hastings, Town Council; Cyrus G. M. Prime, Constable, met in session, when the following proceedings were had and done,-viz. :
" On motion, William Jack was duly chosen president of the board. Hugh Brady was appointed clerk. Benjamin McCreight was appointed treasurer, with directions that he give bond to the borough with one or more sureties in the sum of three hundred dollars, and that his compen- sation be two and a half per cent. on all moneys received and paid over by him. Joseph Sharpe was appointed street commissioner, with a com- pensation of one dollar per diem, and that the compensation of the clerk be ten dollars per annum.
" That James Corbett and Hugh Brady be appointed a committee to procure a seal for the said borough on the most reasonable terms, and that the device of said seal be 'The Seal of the Borough of Brookville.'
" That David Henry be appointed assessor ; that the rate per cent. be
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PIONEER HISTORY OF JEFFERSON COUNTY, PENNA.
one-third per cent. of the dollar for this year; that William Jack and James Corbett be appointed to assist the assessor in making a valuation ; and that the assessor be directed at the time of making his assessment to show his duplicate to the person assessed the amount of his or their assessment. On motion, council adjourned."
" ORDINANCE NO. I.
" AN ORDINANCE TO REPAIR MAIN STREET IN THE BOROUGH OF BROOKVILLE.
" Be it ordained by the Town Council of the Borough of Brookville, in the County of Jefferson, and it is hereby ordained by the authority of the same, That all the moneys about to be raised by the present assessment in said borough (except what may be needed for the payment of officers, procuring seal, books, and stationery for the use of the corporation) shall be paid over to the street commissioner, by orders drawn by the presi- dent of the council upon the treasurer, which said orders shall be coun- tersigned by the clerk, for the purpose of repairing and amending Main Street from the east side of Mill Street to the western boundary of said borough ; and that the said street commissioner is hereby authorized to proceed immediately, upon the receipt of any such moneys, to making the repairs as aforesaid, under the direction of the town council.
" Ordained in council the 2d day of August, 1834.
" Attest : HUGH BRADY, " Secretary."
In 1835 the burgess was Thomas Lucas. Council, William Jack, James Corbett, Jared B. Evans, Samuel Craig, Alexander McKnight.
An act of July II, A.D. 1842, " Regulating Election Districts and for other Purposes" :
" SECTION 14. That the qualified voters of the borough of Brookville, in the county of Jefferson, shall annually hereafter, at the time and place of electing a high constable, town council, and other borough officers, elect two reputable citizens of said borough as constables, and return the names of the persons so elected to the next Court of Quarter Sessions of said county, agreeably to the provisions and regulations of the act of Assembly passed the third day of February, A.D. one thousand eight hundred and thirty-five, and shall also on the same day and place afore- said elect one reputable citizen of said borough as an assessor of all tax- able property in said borough, and that all county rates, and levies, and other taxes shall be levied according to the valuation of said assessor, and that so much of the act passed the fifteenth day of April, A.D. one thousand eight hundred and thirty-four, entitled ' An Act relating to County Rates and Levies, and Township Rates and Levies,' as compels the
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PIONEER HISTORY OF JEFFERSON COUNTY, PENNA.
assessors of said township with the commissioners to ascertain the real value of all property (made taxable by law) within the limits of said borough be and the same is hereby repealed."
Under this act of 1842 the pioneer and separate assessment of Brook- ville as a borough was made in 1844.
BROOKVILLLE'S HISTORIC SPRING-INDIANS AND THEIR WHITE CAPTIVES- JIM HUNT'S CAVE-THE OLD-TIME EMIGRANT.
As early as 1755 there is authentic record that the Delaware Indians carried white captives over a trail through what is now Punxsutawney and Brookville to the Allegheny River and Lake Erie region. These Indians stopped overnight occasionally where Sandy Lick and the North Fork unite, eating their corn-meal and drinking from the spring. It was here that the fugitive Indian, Jim Hunt, had a hiding-place in an artificial cave. Jim was a fugitive from his tribe for murder, and when apprised by the whoops of his friends always hid in this cave. The water was too cool for Jim's stomach, hence he spent most of his time about Bar- nett's, where he could get "fire-water." The old State Road lay on the left of the pike coming from Port Barnett, and came down what is now Litch Hill, close by and near to this spring ; and for eighteen years the old-time emigrant, with his flint-lock gun, his dog, wagon, and family, always stopped at the foot of the hill, in a sly little nook of laurel blossoms, to quench his thirst with old rye and pearly, pure potations of water from this bubbling white-sand spring.
In my early days Sunday-school picnics and occasionally a Fourth of July was celebrated here. To the people of Brookville it was a great resort during the hot days of summer. As a rule, everybody went over on Sabbath with a tin cup to refresh themselves. I clip the following from the pen of Bion H. Butler :
" It is at the foot of the hill just below Heidrick, Matson & Co.'s mill, and it has poured refreshing drinks down many times more throats than did ever Clover's or Tommy Wesley's still, which stood on the pike not far away.
" The sand spring is a great pool in the white rock, where water enough gushes out to run a prohibition campaign and give every man a drink as often as he wants one. When I first knew the spring it was doing business single-handed and alone, although the distillery close by and the brewery across the creek were rivals for public favor, to say nothing of Heber's tavern on the corner. But the spring is there yet, while the distillery is gone ; and the path that leads down to the spring has borne the footprint, often, too, of nearly every man, woman, or child who has travelled this forest or lived in Brookville in the last one hundred years."
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PIONEER HISTORY OF JEFFERSON COUNTY, PENNA.
BROOKVILLE'S EARLY PUGILISTS.
I clip the following from the pen of Bion H. Butler: " Harry Clover was a strong man, and as supple as he was strong. He could lift with his teeth a chair on which was a man weighing two hundred and twenty- five pounds. He could take up a barrel of whiskey easy and drink from the bung-hole.
" Clover was a blacksmith. He weighed two hundred pounds, but he was as agile as any man you ever saw. One day, when he had gone with some lumber to Pittsburg in rafting season, he went into a store to buy a hat. The price did not suit him, so in the course of the banter he told the merchant to hang it on a hook that was screwed in the ceiling and let him kick at it. If he kicked it down it was to be his. If not, he would pay double for it. The first kick Clover brought the hat down, kicking a hole in the ceiling which was a sight for raftsmen for years.
" Harry had no scientific pugilistic training, and never sought a row. On the contrary, he was cowardly, and often would not fight when bullies set on him. But when his anger was aroused his great strength and his activity made him a terrible enemy. When he worked in the old black- smith-shop by the bridge I have seen him shoe unruly horses, and he just held them by main force. His reputation had extended all along the creek ; and in the spring, when we went to Pittsburg with lumber, the first question asked was as to whether Harry Clover had come down.
" More or less rivalry always existed between the raftmen and the furnace-men along the river. One time the Red Bank furnace hands concluded they would clean out the raftmen, and a fellow by the name of Tom Fagan, who had heard of Clover, came down from Catfish Fur- nace to do him up. Clover never wanted to quarrel when sober, and he hid behind a door when Fagan came to look for him. After much per- suasion he was brought forth. When he stepped up before Fagan he closed an eye with each fist before Fagan could get a successful blow on Clover anywhere."
CHAPTER XXVI.
MY FIRST RECOLLECTIONS OF BROOKVILLE.
I WAS born in Brookville when wolves howled almost nightly on what is now known as our " Fair Ground ;" when the pine in its lofty pride leaned gloomily over every hill-side ; when the shades of the forest were heavy the whole day through ; when the woods around our shanty town was the home of many wild animals, such as panthers, bears, wild-cats, foxes, deer, wolves, catamounts, coons, ground-hogs, porcupines, par-
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PIONEER HISTORY OF JEFFERSON COUNTY, PENNA.
tridges, elks, rabbits, turkeys, and pheasants ; when the clear sparkling waters of the North Fork, Sandy Lick, and Red Bank Creeks contained choice pike, many bass, sunfish, horned chubs, trout, and other fish ; when the wild " bee trees" were quite numerous and full of luscious sweets for the woodsman's axe. As you will see, choice meals for hunters and Nimrods could easily be obtained from the abundance of this game.
.
Pioneer court-house and jail, IS31,-
" Where gross misconduct met the lash, And there see the rock-built prison's dreadful face."
The conditions and circumstances of the county made every man a hunter, and each and every one had his gun, bullet-moulds, shot-pouch, and powder-horn for any and every emergency. It was frequently found necessary before going to church on Sunday to shoot a wild turkey or a deer to " keep them off the grass." The " mighty hunters," though, were " Mike," "Dan," John, and "Bill" Long. Dan was murdered on the Clarion River, near Raught's mill. John was the father of Hon. James E. Long. In winter these hunters wore a white garment, called a " hunt- ing-shirt," buckskin breeches, and moccasin shoes. In their shirt belts each carried a flint-knocker, spunk, hunting-knives, and a tomahawk.
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PIONEER HISTORY OF JEFFERSON COUNTY, PENNA.
Animals were ruthlessly killed for their skins. Deer were thus slaughtered, only the " saddles" or hind quarters being saved for food. If a history of these Longs could be truthfully written,-a full narration of their ad- ventures, perils, coolness, and daring while on the trail of bears, wolves, and panthers,-it would, perhaps, make a book equally as interesting as the " Life of Daniel Boone and Simon Girty."
In the way of a preface to these imperfect reminiscences of Brookville and our dear fathers I simply ask of you this :
" Let not ambition mock their useful toil, These homely joys and destinies obscure, Nor grandeur hear with a disdainful smile These short and simple annals of the poor."
My first clear and distinct recollections of our town and the people in it are in the years 1840 to 1843. The ground where the Democrat is now printed was then covered with pines. Then Brookville was a town of forty or fifty "shanties" and eight or ten business places, including the " old brick court-house" and the " old stone jail." The number of people in the town was three hundred and twenty-two. These " shanties" were principally on Main Street, and extended from where the Baptist church now is in the east to where Judge Clark now lives in the west. There were a few scattered shanties on Jefferson Street. A great deep gully crossed Main Street about where the Brookville National Bank now stands.
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